I'm an Irish girl, what can I say? If I can find an excuse to cook with bourbon and beer, I'll find it! The idea for this dish actually came from my love of St. Patrick's Day and also my love of these Healthified Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings, which I made a bit over a year ago and many many times since then.

I basically took the same structure of the Chicken & Dumpling recipe and made it into a hearty Irish inspired Beef & Dumpling recipe instead. This stew is packed full of bold flavor and lots and lots of chunky beef and vegetables. I promise, you won't feel like you're eating anything healthified, but you are. It's definitely a meal in a bowl.

Who knew that Beef & Dumplings would just as awesome as Chicken & Dumplings?

I wasn't sure this would work out, but in the end I'm extremely happy that I tempted the fates with this one.

Now, I used Stubb's Smokehouse Bourbon Cookin' Sauce in this recipe, which you can find online and in many stores. However, if you cannot find it near you or don't have time to wait on snail mail - never fear!

Yum. If there was going to be time for me to make this again for St. Patrick's Day, I definitely would. It's so so good. I'm excited to have leftovers for my lunch today, and who knows, maybe I'll have it for dinner as well!

If you're feeling extra Irish, as I often am, feel free to swap out the sharp cheddar for an Irish cheddar instead.